24: Day 5
by MrJohnDoe
Summary: Jack's fifth day begins with him in prison, but after Los Angeles gets word of a possible attack, he knows he won't be there for long.
1. 4:00am5:00am

I posted this on the 24 message board. They seemed to like it, but not enough people were reading.

Tell me what you think!

The Following Takes Place Between 4:00a.m. and 5:00a.m.

Events Occur in Real Time

Beijing, China

4:00:01p.m. local time

Sally Chan, one of the top advisors to the President of China sat at her desk, tired from the long day. Before almost falling asleep, her phone rang.

She quickly lifted her head from her desk and blinked her eyes a few times. "Sally Chan," she yawned into the phone. As she listened to what the person on the other end had to say, her face turned from a tired expression to one of worry.

"I'll notify the President immediately." She jumped up from her seat and ran across the hall to see the President, who appeared to be just as tired as she had been.

"Mr. President," she began, out of breath. "They have found a member alive. We were right about today."

The President stood there not moving, with a look of shock on his face.

Los Angeles, California

4:02:09 a.m.

Jack Bauer laid in his jail cell wishing he were dead. Ten years ago, he would have never imagined he would be in this situation. He sat up and looked down the hall to make sure no one was watching. After walking to the other side of the small room, he lifted his "bed," and underneath was a small box, and after opening it, Jack saw the familiar picture of his dead wife and his daughter. He picked up the picture, but instead of putting it closer to his face to look at it, he tossed the picture aside as if it didn't matter. Underneath it was what mattered. The small bag of pot he had smuggled in two days before.

"You are what I live for," Jack said as he took it out of the box.

4:03:37

Frank Nixon sat up on the edge of his bed, as he had been doing all night.

"Just try to get some sleep," his wife told him, knowing he had to go to work in a few hours.

"No. You know I won't be able to. You haven't slept either. We've gone through this seven times already. I know how this works. I'll have a tough day at work today, come home tonight, and go right to bed. That's what happens every August 15th."

His wife didn't respond, knowing it would be of now help.

"We have to move," Frank said to himself, although his wife could hear.

"You're right. Too many memories."

"Out of the state. Across the country."

"What?" she shouted.

"I don't want to be anywhere near here, and I want to leave my job."

"Think about that Frank. This was all you've ever wanted to do. That's what you've always told me."

"Not anymore."

Counter Terrorist Unit, Los Angeles

4:05:16

Tina Towers walked into CTU Los Angeles, ready for a full day of work. As she passed her favorite co-workers, she smiled at them and gave them a simple, "Hi." When she neared the stairs leading up to her office, one of the Director of CTU's least favorites came rushing up to her.

"What is it Chloe?"

"Peter Bernard from NSA is on line 2. He says it's urgent."

"Thank you." She turned her head and stepped up the stairs into her office and picked up the phone.

"Towers, CTU," she answered.

Meanwhile downstairs, Chloe had walked past her desk and approached Edgar Stiles, one of her best friends.

"Edgar, do you have the information about the President's security ready? They're going to want it soon."

Edgar looked up from his computer. "It'll be ready in a minute."

"Get it," Chloe said as she turned around and walked away. As she approached her desk, her phone rang.

"CTU O'Brien," She answered.

"Chloe, it's Tina. Call everyone in now!"

"Uh… what-"

"Just do it Chloe," she yelled before hanging up.

4:08:20

Frank Nixon had abandoned his bed and was now standing and pacing across the room while his wife finally got up as well.

"You're right. It's no use trying," she said to Frank.

"Yeah."

"I'm gonna go make some coffee."

"I'll be there in a minute," Frank told her as he continued pacing. He kept walking for several more seconds before the phone rang, an unusual event for the early hour.

"Hello?" he answered.

"Frank, it's Chloe. I know you're not supposed to be in until seven, but we need you here now. Something's come up."

"What?"

"I don't know. Tina's going to brief us all when everyone's here."

"I'll be there soon."

"You'll be here as fast as you can," Chloe told him as she put the phone down.

Frank, feeling somewhat surprised went to his closet and quickly grabbed the first suit he could find and rushed into the bathroom and began to put them on, skipping the shower portion of his morning.

4:09:56

4:14:50

Edgar had had his phone in his hand for the past few minutes and was trying to get through to the President. Finally, on his eighth attempt, he got an answer.

"Hello?"

"Hello, this is Edgar Stiles at CTU, who is this?"

"This is Leo Richards, Special Advisor to the President of the United States."

"Director Tina Towers needs to speak with him now!" Edgar half-yelled.

"Um… He's still in his room. I haven't seen him yet today."

"I don't care. There's been an emergency, she needs to speak with him now!"

"Hold on."

As he was waiting, he pressed a button on his phone and began talking to Tina.

"He'll be on line 2 Ms. Towers."

"Thank you Edgar," was her reply as she switched to line 2 and waited for the President.

"This is President Logan, is this Ms. Tina Towers?" he asked.

"Yes Mr. President, I'm sorry for waking you up so early."

"What's going on Tina?"

"Mr. President, NSA just called. They couldn't get in touch with you so they called us first. They have evidence that suggest a potential terrorist attack in the United States sometime today. Because of the trial today and the fact what happened five years ago was here in Los Angeles, we think L.A. is the target."

There was silence for a moment, then, "What do you have so far?"

"Not much. We just found out and thought we should call you first. I don't think you should go to the trial."

"It's not a simple as that, Tina," President Logan said politely. "I can't just 'not go' to one of the biggest trials in this nations history."

"Mr. President, I know it's not my job to give you my opinions, but I think you're making a mistake."

"I appreciate your concerns, but my mind will not be changed."

"Then can I suggest you remain vigilant and tighten your security."

"Of course, Ms. Towers."

Downstairs, Chloe was now looking at the one small clue they had. It was a file pulled off the suspects computer. One he had forgotten to delete. It was written in Chinese, but once it was translated, it made no sense. It was just numbers and symbols, some of which Chloe had never even seen before. She knew it would take hours to decode.

4:19:14

President Logan did not expect to be woken up to hear such alarming news. He knew if there was going to be an attack it would be in Los Angeles, especially on the day of the trial of Jack Bauer. He was seated at a table in his hotel room with Secret Service Agent Leo Richards across from him.

"Obviously we have to listen to Ms. Towers and tighten up security," Logan said.

Richards hesitated. "Um… Sir, I recommend you don't go to the trial. It's too much of a risk."

Logan didn't even think about his response. "I'm sorry Leo, that's not an option."

Knowing he wouldn't be able to convince the President, Richards thought of what to do. "I just spoke to Mike Novick. He's going to call Bill Reynolds and get him on a flight out here. I thought it would be good to have him around on a day like today."

"Thank you."

"Increasing security won't be too hard. LAPD has a few people they can give us and we can move a couple of men from the hotel to the trial. We will make sure no one gets in unnoticed."

"That's comforting to know, but obviously we can't put all everything we have at this one trial. For all we know it could just be a coincidence."

"You're right, we will remain careful around the city and country. I think you should raise the terror alert level obviously."

"Of course," Logan said remembering he was still in his nightclothes. "Now I would like to get dressed and maybe enjoy some sort of breakfast."

Leo Richards then got up and exited the room.

4:22:05

4:26:19

Frank sat in his car trying to forget about the terrible day it was. As sad as he was however, he knew it would only get worse as the day went on. As a small tear began to come down his face, his cell phone rang.

"Hello?" he answered.

"Frank, what the hell are you doing?" his wife shouted at him. "Where are you?"

Realizing he forgot to tell his wife he was leaving early, he quickly told her, "Chloe called me in. I had to hurry. Sorry."

"Oh, of course you're sorry," she said sarcastically. "This is a tough day for both of us Frank, I'd appreciate it if you thought of me!"

"I'm sorry!"

"No you're not! You're just saying that!"

"No! I-" The dial tone cut Frank off as he realized she hung up on him. As he tossed his phone onto the passenger's seat, he saw the CTU building off in the distance.

4:28:43

While Frank was nearing CTU, the rest of the staff was seated around a large table with Tina standing in the front.

"I was going to wait for Frank to arrive, but because he is taking his time in getting here, I'll start now."

Chloe glared at her. "I just called him! Why don't you give him a chance?"

"Because Chloe, I don't know how you interpret this situation, but I don't find it a good thing. It would help if we had everyone."

"It would help if we knew anything about it! You send this thing to my screen and I have no idea what it is but you expect me to tell you what it says? I don't even know what it's for!"

Just as Tina was about to continue the argument, Frank came running through the door. "I'm here!" he yelled as he tried to catch his breath.

Tina ignored him and began explaining herself. "Early this morning, China arrested a man suspected to be working with a Chinese Terrorist Organization. They have no official name and they seem to be new, but they were discovered about a year ago when they took credit for a bombing in Hong Kong. This man gave up no information, but after raiding his house, police did find a few things. Our intelligence suggests they may be planning an attack against the United States today. Because of the significance of this day and because this is the city the incident happened in five years ago, Los Angeles seems like the most likely target."

"Do we know what kind of attack?" Frank asked.

"If we did, I would have said so, Frank. But because we don't know much about them or what they're capable of, it could be anything."

Edgar, who was seated next to Frank shook his head.

"What is it Edgar?"

"Normally we would have someone dependable here who-"

"What do you call all of-" Tina hesitated. "Most of these people here?"

"No. I mean someone-"

"He means Jack!" Chloe interrupted.

"Well Jack decided to take the cowards way out and run to Mexico Chloe, thanks to the help of some people," she began, knowing Chloe had something to do with Jack's escape. "And we've decided to bring in smarter people instead."

Chloe couldn't help but laugh.

"Is something funny?"

"No."

"Good. Chloe, you continue with your work, everyone else, get to work!" Everyone immediately got up and rushed out of the room.

NSA Headquarters, Fort Meade, Maryland

4:32:37

Head of NSA Peter Bernard was now trying to talk the President out of attending the trial. "You do understand the risks?"

Already, Logan was getting tired of this. "I do, but this is the trial of one of the greatest hero's in this countries history!"

"That's exactly why this shouldn't happen. What if something were to happen to him and the country finds out you knew about it first?"

"I'm going to take that risk!" The President yelled. "This conversation is over."

Bernard was surprised their conversation ended so quickly. As he looked around his small office, he thought to himself for a moment. "There had to be a way around losing one of the great hero's in this countries history. Sending him to court would absolutely put his life in danger." Different solutions quickly began to run through his mind until his eyes went from closed to wide open at the thought of one of them.

4:34:25

4:38:46

Li Wang sat in his car in front of a large office building looking at the front door ahead of him. When he noticed no one was watching, he got out and walked to the door. He then took out an ID card with the picture of someone who looked nothing like him as well as the name Jacob Hughes written on it. When he put the stolen card through the slot next to the door he heard a click noise that showed the door had unlocked. He walked into the empty lobby then into an elevator and pressed the fourth floor button. Then after the door opened, he got out and walked down the hall to the office of Jacob Hughes. Upon entering, he saw exactly what he was looking for placed on his desk. He picked up the stack of papers and left the room, walking toward the elevator to make his escape.

4:41:50

Jack continued to hold the pot in his hand, wanting to enjoy it more and more every minute. As much as he wanted to however, he couldn't. Despite what he wanted, he would be forced to leave soon for a trial he wanted nothing to do with and had made no effort whatsoever to prepare for. Just as he couldn't take it any longer, he heard footsteps approaching and threw the bag behind him. Looking up, he saw his lawyer standing there looking at him. Jack ignored the man.

"Jack, you know you have to do this. You haven't done shit yet, and I just came to see if you wanted to make some effort to help yourself." He gave Jack a minute to respond, and when he didn't, the lawyer continued. "You are the first person I've ever tried to defend that refused to help at all. You wouldn't care if you rotted in here the rest of your life or if you were even killed."

"That's right," Jack answered, breaking his silence.

The lawyer shook his head. "The trial starts at eight, be ready to leave in a couple of hours."

"I'm not leaving this cell," Jack replied as the lawyer began to walk away.

4:43:02

Wang was now driving away from the building he was just at. He needed to get to his next destination on time or he would be in trouble. Unfortunately, his speed was just a little too high and a police officer pulled him over.

"License and registration," Wang said before the officer could.

"Yeah," the officer said, not amused.

He pulled out his wallet and handed him his license.

"Do you have any idea how fast you were going?"

"No," Wang started. "Listen, I have to go can we please hurry this up?"

"It'll take as long as it takes."

"That's not going to work." Wang then slammed on the gas, knocking the cop to the ground and sped down the street.

4:45:39

"How's it going?" Curtis Manning asked Chloe, who was still at her computer.

"Oh," she said, turning to look at him. "I was just about to call you. I got an address off of here. It's not too far, I thought you and Frank should check it out. It's a small building, I don't know what it's used for."

Curtis quickly wrote down the address she was pointing to. "We'll leave soon." He then walked off to find Frank, who was seated on the side of the room on a bench.

"What are you doing?" Curtis asked.

"Huh?" Frank asked, as he lifted his head up from his hands, surprised. "Nothing."

"What are you thinking about?"

"Sorry. This is just a bad day for me."

"Well Frank, I don't think I have to tell you that it's getting worse." Curtis paused. "Chloe gave us an address to check out. I think we should."

"Yeah. Okay." Frank got up and walked with Curtis to the door so they could leave.

4:47:26

Peter Bernard had already decided on the action he was going to take to save the life of Jack Bauer. It would be hard to do and if he was caught, he would absolutely be arrested, but it had to be done. Losing Jack Bauer was not an option.

"I better get started," he whispered to himself. "Bauer won't be in that prison forever." Bernard then picked up a phone and began dialing as his friend and co-worker Kevin Nelson approached his office and waited outside for him to finish on the phone. Before long, Kevin heard Bernard begin to yell. After a couple of seconds, he could completely hear the end of the conversation.

"I don't care what you are doing, I want you to stop it and do what I asked!"

This was followed by a short pause so the other person could speak.

"You work for me. I tell you what to do! Now do it!" Bernard the slammed down the phone and walked out the door of his office, not noticing Kevin, who was so surprised by what he heard, he felt the need to investigate. When Bernard was far enough down the hall so he wouldn't notice his door opening, Kevin opened it and went inside to see who he was calling. It didn't take long to figure out the call was to a prison outside of Los Angeles.

4:49:03

4:53:29

Li Wang was already inside the small building and was walking across the room to the set of lockers on the other end. When he reached them, he opened one of them and took out two briefcases. Immediately after, the phone on the side of the last locker to the right rang.

"Got it," he answered.

"Good. But we have a problem," the voice on the other end replied.

"What is it?"

"A car is approaching the building. Take care of it."

"Of course I will."

"Good. Then meet me at the meeting spot in an hour. Get it done. No mistakes."

"That's what you hired me for," Wang replied as he hung up, then walked out the door and into the parking lot, where he stopped and looked around. No car was visible, so he decided to what in the woods adjacent to the parking lot. He told his boss he would take care of the car, so he opened one of the briefcases and took out the rifle inside, waiting for the car to approach, which it soon did.

4:56:29

Curtis and Frank sat in the parking lot not moving. Curtis had something to ask first.

"So are you going to tell me what's bothering you?"

"It's really a long story Curtis, I don't know if now's the time."

"Just tell me Frank."

"Today is the seven year anniversary of my daughter's death. She was sixteen."

Curtis obviously didn't expect something like that, so he hesitated before replying. "Oh… I'm sorry. I didn't know." Curtis waited again. "Listen Frank, if this is going to affect your work-"

"It won't, Curtis."

"Are you sure? Because it just wasn't today. You've been different for a while now, and I think it might be affecting your work. There's something else isn't there."

Frank nodded. "Let's just check this place out."

The two got out of the car without saying a word. They both closed their doors and started walking toward the building.

4:58:07

His gun was at the ready and he was aimed at the two strangers who got out of the car. He was about to shoot when the one on the left bent down and distracted him. When he stood up, the two were about half way to the building and he knew he had to hurry.

4:59:00

Jack Bauer sat in his cell making no effort to do what his lawyer had asked. Instead he took his head from his hands and closed his eyes.

Peter Bernard was once again in his office sitting down while Kevin Nelson stood in the hallway wondering what to think about what he saw.

President Logan had finished his breakfast and was adjusting his tie, ready to begin his day.

"The door's probably open," Frank said as he continued to step closer.

"Why," Curtis asked, but he stopped his questioning when he heard something. "Did you hear that?"

"No. What?"

"Just something from the-"

Curtis stopped in mid-sentence as Wang, who had re-aimed was ready to shoot took a deep breath. "Okay," he said, then fired his weapon.

5:00:00


	2. 5:00am6:00am

The Following Takes Place Between 5:00a.m. and 6:00a.m. on the Trial Day of Jack Bauer…

5:00:01

Just as Wang fired his shot, Frank Nixon turned around as fast as he could, just in time to watch his best friend fall to the ground.

"No!" he shouted, as Frank followed him to the ground to avoid being shot himself.

Curtis's body collapsed on the ground, with blood dripping from his back. Before Frank could think anymore, he realized he had to ignore his friend and get himself to safety. The car was just across the parking lot and if he got there before the shooter fired again, he could take cover behind it and call for help. He was only about half way there when the shooter fired again, just missing him to the left. Frank had no time to think about this and continued moving as fast as he could. There was only a few feet left, maybe six or seven. He already had started to sweat and when he finally reached the car and took cover, he was out of breath. After taking his cell phone out, he dialed CTU.

"Edgar Stiles," Edgar answered.

"Edgar, it's Frank. I'm taking cover behind the car. A sniper hit Curtis, I think he's the only shooter. Curtis is down, I think he's still alive."

"We'll send backup."

"No. There's no time for that. Once they get here, I'll be dead!"

"There's a police station about five minutes from your location. We can't get here before that. I'll send someone over there now."

"Thanks." Frank hung up and continued to wait patiently behind the car.

5:03:18

The President sat at a table, finishing his breakfast and reading the days newspaper. Leo Richards approached him and sat down.

"Has Peter sent them yet?" the President asked.

"No. I don't know what's taking him so long. He's usually never late with this stuff."

The President looked up from his meal. "Find out what's up."

"Of course, Mr. President." Leo then got up and walked down the hall where he took out his cell phone and called Peter Bernard.

"Bernard, NSA."

"Peter, it's Leo Richards. The President wanted those reports thirty min-"

"They're on their way Leo."

"What's taking you?"

Bernard didn't answer his question. "Have you convinced the President yet?"

"No Peter! Let it go! He's going and there's nothing you can do about it!"

"Goodbye," was the short answer Peter gave before putting the phone down.

Instead of putting his phone down, Richards dialed another number.

"Nelson, NSA."

"Kevin Nelson? This is Leo Richards, I work for the President."

"What can I do for you Mr. Richards?" Kevin asked.

"I just want you to keep an eye on Bernard."

"My boss? Why is that?"

"I just don't want him to do something he'll regret."

Counter Terrorist Unit

5:05:43

"So they never entered?" Tina Towers asked Edgar as she stood over his computer.

"Right. The sniper fired first. I'm pulling up the satellite now to see if there are more shooters. It doesn't appear that way."

"Who's going to help Frank?"

"LAPD will be there in a couple minutes. Frank's taking cover behind their car. He can't see the shooter, so he doesn't know where to fire back."

"I want Frank to call _me _as soon as he's safe. I have to talk to him."

"I'll tell him. Will they bring the suspect here?"

"Yes. I'll have someone ready to interrogate him. We will also need a translator in case he doesn't speak English."

"What about Curtis?" Edgar asked.

"What about him?"

"Well, when the paramedics get there, where will they take him?"

Tina almost laughed at how stupid the question was. "To Sea World Edgar. Where do you think?"

"Which hospital? Will we be updated on his condition?"

"Yes." She then walked off, leaving Edgar to worry about Curtis.

5:07:59

Frank Nixon's heart was beating so loudly he almost wasn't able to hear the police cars that stopped a little short of the woods. Since he had taken cover, the sniper had fired three more shots, all hitting the car and narrowly missing him. Unfortunately for Frank, Wang saw the police cars as well, and knew he had to hurry.

"I'll be quick," he whispered to himself as he pulled back on the trigger and fired, hitting the gas tank and creating a huge explosion which knocked Frank to the ground.

Wang then dropped his weapon and began running through the woods with two officer's chasing after him. The chase continued for what seemed like forever as they went around trees and through small bushes, until the police got close enough so one of the officers could fire his weapon. When he did, he hit Wang in the leg and made him fall to the ground in pain. The two police quickly caught up to him and put handcuffs on the suspect to bring him back to Frank. When they got back, they saw Curtis being put onto a stretcher and carried into an ambulance and Frank being treated by another paramedic from the almost deadly explosion that just occurred.

5:10:20

5:14:32

After Peter Bernard had left his office for the bathroom, Kevin Nelson stepped into his office to find out what the suspicious call to the prison in LA was about. Kevin sat in his chair and checked to see if there had been any other suspicious calls. When he saw there were none, he looked at the one to the prison. Because every call going into and coming out of NSA was recorded, Nelson decided to listen to it. Right before he was about to hit the play button, he heard a noise approaching. Kevin was scared to turn around, and when he did, his worst fear was confirmed.

"What are you doing in my office?" Bernard asked.

Kevin needed to think of a lie quickly. "I- I just remembered I left something in here last night. I was going to get it."

"Where is it?"

He then pretended to look for something on Peter's desk. "I guess it's not here."

"What are you really here for?"

"I'm serious!" he insisted.

"Kevin, do you trust me?"

"Yeah. Of course I do."

"Then you will leave quietly, and not speak of this."

Kevin had no problem listening to that, as he then got up and left the room in silence.

5:17:48

The sun was not yet up in the city of Los Angeles, so the tall, thin man who stood outside a small store just outside of the city gave a small shiver from the cool air. His acquaintance had not yet showed up, and he was getting worried. Any second the call would come and he would have to tell his boss that he was alone. The man looked at his watch and saw it was now 5:18a.m., and the payphone to his left rang.

"I'm here."

"Are you alone?" the voice on the other end asked.

"Yeah."

"That's okay. I told him to take care of something. He might be late."

"What happened?"

"He had to take care of a couple of men that may have been intruding."

"You mean he had to kill them?" he asked.

"Yes."

"He should still be here by now. It shouldn't have taken this long."

"You're right," the voice agreed. He is still seven minutes late."

"Do we wait?"

"No. Proceed with plan B. If he shows up, we revert to plan A."

"I will," the man assured him.

"Good."

There was a click, and the conversation had ended. The man walked across the parking lot to his car and opened his trunk to make sure what he needed was in there. After confirming it was, he got into his car and drove off.

5:20:09

Although he would have rather stayed in his cell, Jack Bauer was lying on a comfortable couch in a small room with two guards waiting near the door for permission to take Jack outside.

"Hungry?" one of the guards asked him.

"Shut up," Jack muttered.

The guard just shook his head.

"I know what you're thinking. Why am I so rude? Why is the greatest hero in this countries history such an idiot?"

The guard nodded.

"My country betrayed me. Now I won't do anything for them."

"Why do you think that?"

"Do you want to hear a story? Take a seat."

The guard walked over and sat down next to Jack.

"The day they tried to have me killed I escaped as you already know. When I was dropped off, I attempted to make it to Mexico. I got about halfway there when China caught up with me. How they knew where I was going, to this day I have no clue. They captured me and took me somewhere."

"Then what happened?"

5:22:54

5:26:11

Chief of Staff Bill Reynolds had been coming from Seattle where President Logan had been the day before. Reynolds had planned on staying an extra couple of days in Seattle in his hotel because he was sick, but he knew he had to help the President on a day like this. His plane was flying over northern California and he would be in Los Angeles soon. Just by looking at him you would know he wasn't feeling well. He was sleeping in a chair with tissues in one hand and an empty glass in another.

"Sir, I-" The woman who had entered stopped after noticing he was asleep. Instead of finishing her sentence, she placed a folder on the seat next to him and left the room. The slight disturbance caused Bill Reynolds to move his arms then eventually open his eyes.

"Sue. Sorry. I was just resting. What is this?"

"Intelligence reports from the President. Just to update you so you know what's going on when we land."

"Thanks." He grabbed the folder and began to read.

Sue's ringing cell phone caused her to turn around and leave so she could receive the call in private.

5:28:12

Everyone's head turned as Frank Nixon entered CTU with Wang. Tina Towers quickly approached him. "We're ready in Interrogation Room B, Frank."

"Good. I'll do it," he told her.

"What? Do you think I'm crazy?" she asked him.

"Who were you thinking of?"

"Strickland."

"You think he's better than me?"

Tina hesitated. "Well, you do have the experience, but-"

"That's what it comes down to Tina! I'm better than him, today is an important day, let me do it!" he yelled.

"Fine. We're ready for you."

Just as he began to lead Wang in the right direction, the phone coming from his desk rang.

"CTU Nixon."

"What are you doing?" the yelling woman's voice responded.

"I can't talk about it right now," he told his wife.

"I can't believe this. This is awful! You leave without-"

"I'll call you later and explain."

"If I'm still here."

"Don't do this," he started to say, but she already hung up. "Damnit." He then continued to lead Wang to the Interrogation Room and threw him into a chair when they got inside.

"Believe me it'll be a lot better if we do this the easy way," Frank warned him.

Wang said nothing.

"What were you doing there?" Frank asked.

Wang laughed. "You think I'd tell you?"

"I think you have to."

"I kill your friend and you think I'll just confess everything?"

Frank felt an immediate rush of anger. "He's not dead!" he shouted.

"Whatever."

"You're a real idiot."

Wang didn't respond.

"I'll be back in a minute. Think about what you want to say." Frank left the room, leaving Wang by himself.

5:31:03

5:35:28

"And you believed them?" the guard asked Jack, who was still in the same laying position as before.

"Yes. They helped me realize how no one appreciated what I had done. I save the President twice, I get a thank you. I save the city from a nuclear bomb, and return to work only to become addicted to heroin. I save the country again and get a handshake, then save the world a year later and the country decides to have me killed."

"But you do realize-"

"I knew a man once, many years ago. I worked with him for a while. Many years after I thought he died, I saw him again. I remember what he said and I agree. This country doesn't care."

"You know that's not true."

Jack was about to respond, but the guard's walkie-talkie interrupted him.

"Where are you?"

The guard lifted it from his belt and responded. "With Bauer."

"I need you both to come here now."

"But what about Bauer?"

"It's okay, he won't go anywhere."

"Um… are you crazy?"

"Just do it. That's an order!"

The two guards quickly got up and left, leaving Jack alone in the room.

5:37:57

"What did you find?" Leo Richards asked Kevin Nelson as Richards stood alone in a hallway.

"He made a call about fifty minutes ago to the jail where Jack is. The conversation included a lot of yelling. I tried to listen to the call but he caught me. I think he suspects I'm up to something."

"That's okay," Richards assured him. "Just stay out of his way. I need to make a call now." They both hung up at the same time and Leo Richards began dialing another number.

"Lancaster Prison," a man answered.

"My name is Leo Richards, I work for the President of the United States."

"What can I do for you?"

"I want you to check on Jack Bauer and make sure he has enough security on him. I have reason to believe someone might be aiding him in an escape attempt."

The man who had answered the phone turned his head to the security camera's and looked at the room Jack Bauer was supposed to be in. It was empty.

"Um… I'm going to have to get back to you Mr. Richards," he then hung up the phone and ran out of the room.

5:40:06

Frank re-entered the room and Wang showed no emotion.

"You could either talk to me or talk to the man outside this door, and believe me he isn't as nice as I am."

"Really?"

"I have nothing to torture you with, he does." Frank told him.

When Wang didn't respond, Frank added, "I don't have much time here. What's going on?"

Wang remained silent.

Suddenly, Frank jumped onto the table and grabbed the man by the throat. Wang instantly began to fight him, trying to pry his arms loose, but couldn't. When he began gasping for air, Frank finally let go.

"If you kill me, who will talk?" Wang asked.

"I thought you weren't going to talk anyway."

"We might be able to work a deal out."

Knowing immediately what he meant, the CTU Agent laughed. "Not going to happen. Either you talk now or I assume you never will and kill you."

"I'm not stupid. That's not going to happen."

Without hesitating, Frank flipped the table at Wang, causing him to fall to the ground with the table on top of him. Frank pushed it aside and put his foot down on Wang's throat.

"Blink twice, and I will stop and you will talk. Don't talk and I will kill you."

Wang's eyes remained open as Frank began to press his foot down harder. Finally, just before Wang was about to pass out, he blinked and Frank released him with the suspect holding his neck and in extreme pain.

"Ready?"

Wang got up and put his chair in the right position and sat down, still catching his breath and clutching his neck. Frank didn't like the fact that he didn't respond right away and punched him in the stomach.

"No." Wang said, bleeding from his face. "I won't tell you anything."

This time, Frank was done playing games. He took out his gun and pointed it at him. The criminal's expression did not change until Frank actually fired, hitting him in the shoulder. As Wang screamed in pain, several people rushed into the room, along with Tina Towers.

"Frank, what the hell are you doing?" she screamed.

Frank didn't lower his gun. "I will kill you this time. What is going to happen?"

This time, Wang broke his silence. "Something far worse than you could ever imagine."

Frank looked at Tina. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Wang smiled. "Ask Bauer."

5:44:41

5:49:52

Jack Bauer was now outside the prison, only a few feet from the barbed-wire fence that surrounded it. For some reason, the guards had left him alone, giving him time to escape. Jack had been thinking about how to get out for a few minutes now, and decided on the one sure way. A truck sat near the gate, sure to be on its way out any minute. The driver had temporarily abandoned the vehicle and this gave Jack the opportunity he needed to sneak in. The guards guarding the gate were directly in front of the truck, so if he opened the back door, no one would notice. He opened it just a little, and sneaked into the empty back area and closed the door. Jack smiled to himself. He had escaped and wouldn't have to go to the trial. He had to forget about his happiness for a minute however, when he heard the front door open and the driver return, making Jack duck down behind the front seat. The driver turned the radio on and before long they were away from the prison. Jack continued to smile as they continued down the road and once a safe distance away, he decided to make his move. He put his hand in his pocket and took out the gun he had stolen from a guard who was watching one of the exits to the building. Jack looked at it for a moment, then jumped up and jammed it into the driver's head.

"What the hell?" The driver screamed.

"We're going to take a little detour," Jack whispered to him.

"Where?"

"Ever been to Bakersfield?"

"Yes."

"Good, so you can get us there. Drive."

The driver quickly agreed and turned the car around and began driving toward Bakersfield.

5:53:21

The tall man was still in his car, still driving. Now, he was talking on his cell phone to the man from before.

"I'm about to make the call now," he said.

"Good," the voice replied.

"I'll tell you when it's done." The man then hung up and made his next call.

"Hello?" Answered a female voice.

"I just got off the phone with him. Wang never turned up, so we're going with Plan B. Do it now."

"I will." The girl hung up and the man grinned, knowing he was about to make more money then he could ever imagine. Now, all that was left was to go home and to have success confirmed.

5:55:17

President Logan was speaking with two men in black suits when Leo Richards approached him.

"Mr. President, I need to speak with you immediately."

President Logan nodded at the two men and they left quickly, leaving Logan alone with Richards.

"What is it Leo?"

"Sir, Jack Bauer just escaped from prison."

The Presidents expression suddenly changed to one of disappointment. "How?"

"The two guards watching him were ordered to leave him alone sir."

"What? That is absurd! How did that happen?"

"I think Peter Bernard had something to do with it. He made a call to the prison a little over an hour ago. You know what he thought about the possibility of Jack dying today."

"Well, he has to be arrested. This is inexcusable."

"There's no proof, sir. But I'm working on it."

"Working on it? How?"

"Do you know Kevin Nelson?"

"Yes."

"He can get proof, but I told him to stay out of his way for now. Bernard suspects he's up to something."

"Well, tell him it's urgent now that Bauer's escaped. Make him find a way to distract Bernard so he can get the proof."

"Yes sir." Leo Richards then turned around and walked away, ready to fulfill the President's requests.

5:58:33

Bill Reynolds had once again fallen asleep on the airplane, knowing his attempt to look at the folder he was just given had failed miserably. For the second time that day, the woman named Sue entered the room woke him up.

"You wanted some water sir."

"Oh… yes of course," he said as he opened his eyes and sat straight up as if to try and hide the fact he was sleeping. "Thank you." He took it and began drinking as Sue smiled at him.

"Is there something wrong?"

"No," she said quickly and looked away at something else.

Jack Bauer still had his gun pointed at the driver, to make sure he wouldn't try anything stupid. Jack knew that in a little while, he would be a free man.

Peter Bernard sat in his chair, doing nothing. His feet were up on his desk, and he took a sip of his water as he continued to relax.

The expression on Li Wang's face couldn't be identified as a happy or sad one. He just sat in the small room, staring across the table at Frank, who was trying to get as much out of the criminal as he could.

"Thanks, this is great," Reynolds said, feeling somewhat more alert. He took a few more sips, then finished the glass, which was only about halfway filled to begin with.

"Would you like some more?" she asked.

"Yes, thank-" Reynolds stopped speaking. He suddenly felt a terrible pain in his stomach. "Ah!" He screamed. Sue quickly rushed over to him as the pain began to get worse, but instead of helping him, she picked up the pillow that was next to the Chief of Staff and began to hold it over his mouth to smother his screams. Reynolds began fighting instantly, but as he kicked at her, the pain only increased and soon it was so unbearable, he finally fell unconscious and stopped fighting. Sue kept the pillow over him for a little while longer just to make sure, then took it off. She looked down at him and felt his pulse. When she no longer felt one, she hid her smile, and yelled, "Someone come quick!" and saw two people run in to see the dead Chief of Staff, lying dead in his seat.

6:00:00


End file.
